Sat, Jan 13, 2018
Statement By Association President Follows Announcement Of Basing Decision
Retired Brig. Gen. Roy Robinson, the NGAUS president, issued a statement after the recent release of the Army basing decision for the four AH-64 Apache attack-helicopter battalions to remain in the Army National Guard. The battalions will be in North Carolina, South Carolina and Utah with a battalion split between Texas and Mississippi.
"The recent announcement that the Army will retain four AH-64 Apache attack-helicopter battalions of 18 aircraft each in the Army National Guard follows to the letter the recommendation of the National Commission on the Future of Army.
"Unfortunately, that recommendation was made two years ago—in a very different environment," Robinson said in the statement.
"Today's quickly emerging threats make readiness paramount, and 18 aircraft are six fewer than an Apache battalion needs to deploy. This means Guard Apache battalions will never have enough aircraft to train the way they are supposed to fight. And each would have to borrow six aircraft to go to war.
"In addition, as the House of Representatives noted in the fiscal 2018 National Defense Authorization Act, the active-component Army has a serious Apache pilot shortage that wasn't foreseen two years ago. The Guard currently has six Apache battalions. The decision to keep just four effectively cuts two battalions of Apache pilots when the Army and the nation urgently need them.
"We know this largely was a dollar-driven action. NGAUS stands ready to work with Army leaders and Congress to find the money to build the attack-helicopter force the Army and the nation need in an increasingly troubled world."
(Source: NAGUS news release. Image from file)
More News
Also: B-29 Superfortress Reunion, FAA Wants Controllers, Spirit Airlines Pulls Back, Gogo Galileo Van's Aircraft posted a short video recapping the goings-on around their reorganiz>[...]
Light Gun A handheld directional light signaling device which emits a brilliant narrow beam of white, green, or red light as selected by the tower controller. The color and type of>[...]
"The journey to this achievement started nearly a decade ago when a freshly commissioned Gentry, driven by a fascination with new technologies and a desire to contribute significan>[...]
"Our driven and innovative team of military and civilian Airmen delivers combat power daily, ensuring our nation is ready today and tomorrow." Source: General Duke Richardson, AFMC>[...]
Aircraft Conflict Predicted conflict, within EDST of two aircraft, or between aircraft and airspace. A Red alert is used for conflicts when the predicted minimum separation is 5 na>[...]